"Sunday 29th July 2018. An ascent of Mont de Gez 1097m/163m, Val d’Azun, near Argelès-Gazost, Hautes Pyrénées, France. 11.0km, with 600m of ascent. 4hrs 5mins. My wife and I were staying, for the second time, at a beautiful gîte in the village of Gaillagos, in Val d’Azun, south-west of the famous town of Lourdes in the French Pyrenees. Our stay gave me the opportunity to complete what I had begun in August 2016 – to visit all the summits on the ridge that runs along the northern side of Val d’Azun. One of the main tributaries of the Gave d’Arrens river, which runs through this dramatic valley, has its source in the Balaïtous Massif (see at https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bala%C3%AFtous), one of the great three-thousand-metre peaks of the Pyrenees. The massif could be clearly seen from the veranda of our gîte. The Crête du Val d’Azun does not reach these heights (the highest mountain along the ridge is Pic de Bazes at 1804m/330m), but it is full of interest. There are limestone peaks and crests of the type often associated with the Pyrenees, but also heather-clad hills with acid soils reminiscent of some the hills of Mid Wales. Wildlife teems, with a wide variety of but..." — marktrengove • Jul 29, 2018